Explosion of Opportunity Throughout Southern Virginia Helps to Set the Stage for TechSpark Expansion Across the United States

In the face of unfavorable economic headwinds, Microsoft is doubling down on their commitment to spur economic growth in rural communities across the United States. This program intends to build off the lessons learned from the deep community engagement work of Microsoft TechSpark that was announced in 2017 and replicate these learnings in all 50 states. 

Communities of all sizes throughout the nation are clawing for limited resources to try to bring opportunities to their residents to help build equitable footing to compete for tech-enabled careers.  Those issues are typically exasperated in rural communities, similar to those in Southern Virginia, as they are desperately trying to upskill their residents, but also retain them. A common misconception in rural communities is the scarcity of high-quality, localized training that can lead to a rewarding career. The emergence of the SOVA Innovation Hub has brought a conveying “power” to the region. Deliberate, inclusive intent has helped to bring numerous partners to the table to drive impact across similar programs that were once siloed. These enhanced approaches have bolstered program offerings between all the partners.

Much of the focus in Southern Virginia has revolved around training opportunities for K-12 students, collegiate students, and adult learners looking for a career change. While a number of these offerings have existed for quite some time, the partners have made a concerted effort to align these into a career path. This has produced various levels of obtainment, a certificate of completion, an industry-recognized credential, an associate degree, or a roadway to a bachelor’s degree. One of the greatest successes has been the build out of computer science education throughout the K-12 system and beyond. Our partnership with the Girls Who Code Club was initially launched in middle school and has since expanded into numerous elementary schools. In conjunction with the TEALS program offered in all of the high schools, this now provides a pathway for students interested in computer science throughout their entire K-12 journey. Fortunately for Southern Virginia students, their learning doesn’t have to conclude with their graduation from high school. Two local partners, Southside Virginia Community College and the Southern Virginia Higher Education Center, currently offer the Datacenter Academy training program to prepare students for work in a datacenter. 

While the population in Southern Virginia isn’t booming, we certainly aren’t short on champion partners that have stood shoulder to shoulder with us since this journey started. We were fortunate enough to land our signature project partner, Mid-Atlantic Broadband, shortly after TechSpark was launched in late 2017. Their rich history with education training partners throughout the region helped to serve as a catalyst for new program opportunities that Microsoft had readily available. All of this synergy helped lead to the creation of the SOVA Innovation Hub, a facility that is charged with sparking economic transformation by:

1. inspiring people to pursue digital careers and entrepreneurship by bringing business and education partners together to offer innovative programming, and

2. provide a place to work, learn, and experience through the coworking space, training space, and the Microsoft Experience Center. This new, state-of-the-art facility helped strengthen existing relationships and forge new relationships across the region, as we had ten organizations provide letters of support during the planning of the TechSpark signature project.  Each and every one of these organizations have been pivotal to the success of TechSpark in Southern Virginia. Southside Virginia Community College (SVCC) continues to be an advocate of growth every time Microsoft brings an opportunity to the table.  SVCC’s initial partnership with Microsoft began with the offering of the Datacenter Academy training program for adult learners. This program has now grown into a dual enrollment offering for students in four county school systems. SVCC participated in a pilot project to work with a grant writing consultant contracted by Microsoft to seek funding from the NSF to expand their IT offerings and recruit females and racial and ethnic minorities into their IT training program.  Additionally, SVCC has partnered with national organizations to begin developing cybersecurity course offerings. SVCC is also piloting a program that brings cybersecurity professionals into the classroom to enhance courses with industry professionals, similar to the design of the TEALS program. Finally, SVCC just recently partnered with Microsoft to bring College Coaches throughout their service area to help educate students about the training opportunities available to them here at home.  

Much success has been had across Southern Virginia over the first five years of TechSpark. Every high school in the TechSpark region has a TEALS program which has helped deliver computer science education to nearly 300 students in the region. More than a dozen Hour of Code events have been held in elementary schools and middle schools reaching more than 1,200 students. Stand-alone DigiGirlz events and weekly Girls Who Code Clubs have brought programming opportunities to more than 200 young ladies. The two Datacenter Academies have produced more than 500 graduates that were ready to start their careers in IT. Our newest program, gener8tor Upskilling, has produced 114 graduates that earned a combined 513 certificates to help set their new career paths in motion. Two 4-H Tech ChangeMakers groups have helped bring leadership discussions to more than 500 high school students. Southern Virginia has seen additional revenue brought into the region from national grants exceeding $20M. The ChangeX program has brought seed funding to more than 40 community-based projects across the region, while distributing over $100k to build out those projects. Two meshed Wi-Fi networks were built out in the region to help bring a reliable connection to those individuals visiting the county seat and during peak visitation times. 

This is an exciting time for Microsoft to be able to share the learnings from the TechSpark program over the last five years to the rest of the United States. The opportunity for collective inclusive economic growth within a region supported by numerous organizations continues to be a recipe for success. We are looking forward to working hand-in-hand with organizations that are poised to take this next step. 

We want to encourage any and all interested organizations to sign up for the informational webinar that is scheduled for Wednesday, March 1, from 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. EST. 

Through the TechSpark program, Microsoft partners with communities to understand their unique regional challenges and to explore solutions, programs, and partnerships that will be most effective at the local level.